1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to shower chairs, commode chairs, and wheelchairs of the type accommodating non-ambulatory persons, and more particularly to a combination shower-commode chair and transfer track wherein the chair has a seat which is slidable from the chair onto a track mounted on a bathtub which allows a person to be transported to the bathroom and then rolled on the chair seat over an area above the bathtub without requiring the person to be lifted from the seat. Optional wheel, frame, and seat arrangements allow conversion to a multi-purpose chair propelled by the occupant or to a wheelchair.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Non-ambulatory persons which include paraplegics (those without the use of their lower extremities) face numerous problems in carrying out activities of daily living (ADL), such as dressing, toileting, and showering or bathing. One of the major problems is merely gaining entry into a conventional bathroom, because of the standard narrow doorway, and once inside, gaining access to the conventional commode and bathtub or shower facilities.
Many non-ambulatory persons must be lifted from a wheelchair to a bed where they can be most easily undressed and then lifted by an attendant and placed into the wheelchair and transported to the bathroom doorway, which is usually too narrow to allow passage of the wheelchair. The non-ambulatory person is then lifted from the wheelchair, carried through the narrow doorway, and then placed onto the commode seat for toileting or on a chair which has been previously placed in the bathtub or shower stall for a bath or shower.
This repeated lifting subjects both the non-ambulatory person and the attendant to possible physical strain or injury and is particularly hazardous because of the risk of slipping or falling. Disabled persons desire to accomplish their daily bathroom activities in privacy and without any more handling by an attendant than is absolutely necessary. Being physically handled while undressed can be very degrading to the disabled.
Often, when there is no attendant available, or to avoid physical handling and being carried nude, those non-ambulatory persons who are physically able will lower themselves from their bed or wheelchair in their bedroom and crawl through the standard doorway which is too narrow for wheelchair passage. Once inside the bathroom, they must undress themselves and then pull themselves into the commode seat or a shower seat which has been placed into a bathtub on shower stall.
Commode chairs are known in the art, for non-ambulatory persons who do not have sufficient upper arm strength to pull themselves onto the commode seat or shower chair previously placed in the tub or shower stall. These commode chairs have a seat with a central aperture which is fixedly mounted on a wheeled frame which allows a person to be placed in the chair and then moved over the commode. Since the seat portion is fixed to the frame, the common commode chair is limited in use. Even though a non-ambulatory person may be lifted onto the commode chair, he or she must be lifted again to be placed into a chair in the bathtub or shower stall.
Widening standard bathroom doorways is expensive and may not be architecturally possible because of structural or space limitations, leasing restrictions, etc. There are no known commode chairs capable of occupant propulsion through a standard narrow bathroom doorway from any site outside the bathroom where undressing is most easily accomplished.
There are several patents which disclose various chair and track arrangements which facilitate the use of bathroom facilities.
Thomas, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,253,203 and 4,359,791 disclose a collapsible bench which cooperates with a roller mounted rotatable chair so that a person can slide into and out of the bathtub area. The Thomas transfer bench has two legs supported in the bathtub and two legs supported on the floor adjacent the bathtub. The Thomas apparatus requires that non-ambulatory person be lifted onto the shower seat which has been previously placed in the tub. It cannot be used as commode chair cannot transport an occupant through a doorway, cannot be propelled by the occupant, or be converted to a wheelchair.
Bailey, U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,445 discloses a shower chair assembly having a track movably mounted on the tub which cooperates with a rotatable chair so that a person can slide longitudinally and rotate in the bathtub area. The track is movably mounted on rollers and moved relative to the bathtub. The Bailey assembly requires that the non-ambulatory person be lifted onto the rotatable seat. It cannot be used as commode chair, cannot transport an occupant through a doorway, and cannot be propelled by the occupant, or be converted to a wheelchair. It is also not collapsible and easily portable.
Hancock, U.S. Pat. No. 4,091,479 discloses a shower chair assembly having a track frame with wheels on the bottom such that it can be placed partially in and partially out of a shower stall or bathtub and has a chair seat on the frame which allows a person to slide into the shower stall or bathtub area and rotate. The track is movably mounted on rollers and moved relative to the shower stall or bathtub. The assembly requires that the non-ambulatory person be lifted onto the rotatable seat. It cannot be used as commode chair, cannot transport an occupant through a doorway, cannot be propelled by the occupant, or be converted to a wheelchair. It is also not collapsible and easily portable.
Maling, U.S. Pat. No. 3,090,969 discloses a traveling chair for shower stalls which includes a frame supported on the floor partially in and partially out of a shower stall and has a chair seat on the frame which allows a person to slide into the shower stall. The assembly requires that the non-ambulatory person be lifted onto the rotatable seat. It cannot be used as commode chair, cannot transport an occupant through a doorway, cannot be propelled by the occupant, or be converted to a wheelchair. It is also not collapsible and easily portable.
McLoughlin, U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,733 discloses a bath and chair arrangement which includes a custom made tub having a door. Although the chair has a track, there is no suggestion of a track which can be mounted on an existing conventional tub which cooperates with the chair. The assembly requires a special tub which would be expensive. It cannot be propelled by the occupant in the manner of a wheelchair, is not portable, and is not designed for conventional tubs.
The present invention is distinguished over the prior art in general, and these patents in particular by a shower-commode chair and bathtub transfer track which can be easily mounted on a conventional tub and connected together to transfer a person on a sliding chair seat between the chair and the tub area of a bathtub in a seated position without being lifted from the seat. The chair has an adjustable height frame supported on wheels and a pair of horizontal channels secured in parallel spaced relation extending from side to side. The seat is supported on rollers slidably received in the horizontal channels. The bathtub transfer track has a pair of elongate channels secured in parallel spaced relation to extend transversly from one side of the bathtub to the other supported on the top surfaces of the bathtub walls and spanning the open tub area of the bathtub to receive and support the seat. Independently removable arm members connected to the chair frame retain the seat on the chair frame when attached and allow movement of the seat when removed. A removable backrest connected to the seat moves with the seat and a seatbelt may be connected to the backrest. The transfer track is adjustable in height to correspond with the chair height, adjustable angularly relative to a horizontal plane to facilitate drainage, and adjustable to fit bathtubs of various widths. The chair may be used alone as a commode chair or in combination with the track, and the track with the seat supported thereon may be used independently of the chair. Optional wheel, seat, and frame arrangements convert the chair either to an occupant propelled multi-purpose chair capable of passing through a standard bathroom doorway or, to an occupant propelled wheelchair.